Tag: NFC

Apple knocks Google off top spot

prismThe internecine war between Google and Apple took a further twist when it emerged that the Cupertino company now holds the pole position on indoor location technology likely to be widely used in shops.

ABI Research said that “Apple has taken the bull by the horns” in the retail market with several firms vying to win the war.  Technologies using LED from ByteLight, Qualcomm and Philips and magnetic field  technology from companies like IndoorAtlas are going to change the way shops look.

Apple leads the way with its iBeacon, otherwise known as Bluetooth Smart or BLE.  Other vendors can license this name for their own products.

Electronic shelf labels using protocols like NFC and BLE are set to increase and app companies are filling the gaps.

Patrick Connolly, a senior analyst at ABI said the world is likely to see the first deployments of light systems next year.

Connolly said: “The widespread availability of BLE beacons makes it very easy for retails to deploy a light system to test the water and measure shopper acceptance.”

He added that Zebra/Motorola, Ruckus and Aruba will combine wi-fi with BLE and other location technologies.

Asus launches NFC thing

asus-nfc-dongleNFC is slowly taking off, but adoption is still limited. The technology is there, most phones and tablets ship with NFC chips, but very few people and businesses actually use it.

Now Asus has an interesting product that could help bring NFC to desktops and notebooks, but there is a catch.

The company’s NFC Express receiver is a USB 3.0 device that could have quite a few uses. It could allow users to log in using Windows 8 and NFC tags and it could allow the transfer of photos and images without WiFi.

The catch is that the device was designed to be used with Asus Z87 motherboards. It also ships as an accessory with the Z87-DELUXE/DUAL motherboard. It can also be bought separately and it uses two USB 3.0 ports.

Logging into Windows without a password sounds interesting, but NFC dongles could have a lot of other applications. Cheap, off-the-shelf devices could be used to upgrade existing PCs or POS systems in retail outlets. However, for this to happen NFC needs to see a lot more adoption across the board.

PrePay pops up EE NFC payments

oldmastercardTelco Everything Everywhere (EE) has announced its Cash on Tap service, or NFC payments through a mobile app, and it is largely built by European company PrePay Solutions.

PrePay will be offering e-Money issuing, BIN sponsorship, and transaction processing for Cash on Tap, supported through a proprietary app service that lets the app and NFC phone act as a digital wallet.

Payment options include NFC payments through MasterCard PayPass, online payments with a virtual MasterCard, storing credit and debit card details, loading funds from bank transfer, debit and credit cards, as well as customer balance enquiry and transaction history.

Users will be able to use their mobiles for contactless payments as well.

EE customers will be able to get the app through Google Play, though it only works on a select number of 4G handsets.

PrePay MD Ray Brash said there’s been a lot of anticipation for proper digital mobile payments, and this development makes it a reality for the first time in the UK.

Mobile payments explosion might be a damp squib

google-walletFor months now we’ve been reading very optimistic reports on the future of mobile payments and m-commerce, but one outfit is apparently looking beyond the hype. Research firm eMarketer has slashed its growth estimate for proximity mobile payments in half.

Last October eMarketer forecasted that mobile payments would hit $2.13 billion this year, but in its latest note it puts the figure at $1 billion. Although the number of mobile transactions has more than tripled over the past two years, growth is apparently slowing down, plagued by a multitude of issues.

The firm pointed out that delays and adoption issues are hampering growth. The fact that there are already several competing platforms isn’t helping, either. However, it is still looking good in the long run. By 2016 mobile transactions should hit 2016, roughly a year behind the previous eMarketer schedule. Just a year later, in 2017, mobile payments should hit $58 billion.

Aside from the usual hardware teething problems, mobile payment outfits need to address security concerns and streamline the process itself. At the moment, the user experience still involves too much friction, according to PayPal CTO James Barrese. The ultimate goal is to come up with a one-touch payment scheme that would be a lot simpler and quicker than the good old card swipe. That probably won’t come about soon, and maintaining a level of security deemed acceptable by consumers might be very challenging.

In addition, the fact that there are several players vying for their slice of the pie, using their own systems and infrastructure, means that there is plenty of room for consolidation, reckons Venture Beat. However, big players aren’t very open to consolidation, or even cooperation, hence it is very unlikely that a single platform can break out of the pack and transform itself into an industry standard.

Mobile wallet market worth billions by 2018

google-walletThe mobile wallet market is about to get big, huge even. According to a new report published by Transparency Market Research, the global mobile wallet market will reach $1,602.4 billion by 2018. In EMEA it will grow at a CAGR of 30.7 percent from 2012 to 2018 and EMEA will be the largest mobile wallet market in the world by 2018.

EMEA accounted for about 40 percent of the global mobile wallet share in 2011, but the Asia Pacific region is expected to see the fastest growth over the next five years.

The staggering figures sound optimistic to say the least, but Transparency Market Research is basing them on a few emerging trends that hold a lot of promise. The outfit found that affordable NFC enabled phones and POS (point of sale) systems will be the main drivers of growth over the next few years.

Retail is currently the biggest application for mobile wallet services and the trend is set to continue, due to ease of payment using smartphones and initiatives to introduce new POS terminals in convenience stores. Vending machines are also a potent market. Mobile network operators are expected to play a pivotal role in future mobile wallet adoption.

Unsurprisingly, the key players in the market will be Visa, MasterCard, American Express, PayPal, Google and others from the list of usual suspects.

However, it won’t be just smooth sailing. Quite a few consumers still don’t know how mobile wallets actually work and we’re pretty sure that many aren’t even aware of their existence. Security and privacy remain sources of concern, too.

Gartner predicts mobile payment will rocket

crystalWorldwide mobile payment transaction values will rocket this year according to Gartner, which predicts these transactions will hit $235.4 billion in 2013 – a 44 percent boost from $163.1 billion in 2012.

The number of mobile payment users worldwide will reach 245.2 million in 2013, up from 200.8 million in 2012, according to the research.

Sandy Shen, research director, Gartner, said the company expected global mobile transaction volume and value to average 35 percent annual growth between 2012 and 2017. He added the company was forecasting a market worth $721 billion with more than 450 million users by 2017.

Despite this, the company had lowered the forecast of total transaction value “due to lower-than-expected growth in 2012, especially in North America and Africa”.

Near Field Communications’ (NFC’s) transaction value has also been slashed with a reduction of 40 percent throughout the forecast period. Gartner said this is thanks to disappointing adoption of NFC technology in all markets in 2012, and the fact that some high-profile services, such as Google Wallet and Isis, struggled to gain traction.

Gartner predicts NFC will account for just two percent of total transaction value in 2013 and five percent of the total transaction value in 2017. However, growth is expected to increase from 2016 when the penetration of NFC mobile phones and contactless readers increases.

Money transfers and merchandise purchases will account for about 71 percent and 21 percent of total transaction value in 2013, respectively, making them by far the largest contributors. Worldwide, people are not purchasing as much because the buying experience on mobile devices has yet to be fully optimised, though the economic situation must count for something too.

People are spending less using mobile devices than through online e-commerce services and at retail outlets. Merchandise purchases account for about 23 percent of the total value forecast for 2017, Gartner said.

Bill payment value should grow 44 percent in 2013 and maintain consistent growth through the forecast period. Gartner said this is thanks to higher value per transaction figures, as more consumers in developed markets performed bill payments using mobile banking services – along with consumers in emerging markets who are transacting at higher values than originally forecast.

Western Europe’s transaction value is expected to reach $29 billion in 2013, up from $19 billion in 2012.

Google ditches physical card

google-walletGoogle is planning to revamp its Google Wallet digital payments platform at Google I/O. However, it seems plans for a physical credit card have been shelved, at least for the time being.

According to AllThingsD, Google informed its staff that the card was ditched in a memo circulated after Google Wallet head Osama Bedier announced he is leaving the company.

However, although the card is history, Wallet is about to get a small revamp. Google will announce a number of changes at I/O, including an update to its rewards programme, more offers and loyalty points, along with the addition of more merchants.

Without a physical card though, Google Wallet will still rely solely on NFC technology, which hasn’t taken off yet. It was hoped that a proper card could push Google Wallet to the next level, but now it seems Google is rethinking its approach. Google doesn’t want to become a bank, or the next Visa. It wants to coexist with existing players and tap their vast infrastructure.

On the gossipy side, sources told AllThingsD’s Liz Gannes that Google CEO Larry Page pulled the plug on the card launch after he witnessed a glitchy demo last week. Apparently Page had long been sceptical of a physical card and the buggy demo was the last straw.

M-commerce survey reveals strong growth

SmartphonesA survey carried out by Stibo Systems has revealed that the number of m-commerce purchases has increased by 19 per cent over the last year.

The study found that the number of purchases made over e-commerce increased from 40 per cent to 59 per cent in 12 months. However, the survey also established that 17 percent of consumers aren’t too keen on m-commerce channels when they can’t find the necessary information using their tablet or mobile.

Finding product info using a smartphone should be relatively straightforward, but 48 per cent of respondents said small screens make it very hard to read information once it has been found. In other words, m-commerce outfits should start using bigger fonts. Another 46 per cent said they are still concerned about security, reports QRcodepress.

SEO Positive exec Ben Austin said the ever evolving smartphone and tablet market is making mobile purchases much easier than before. The added level of convenience has managed to attract more consumers, but more work needs to be done.

“This research also highlights the need for the information on mobile sites to be clear and secure,” he said.

The industry needs to do more to address security concerns, which are overblown as it is, and they apparently need to redesign their mobile shopping sites to improve readability on small screens. The latter part sounds easy enough, but strengthening confidence in mobile security might prove a bit more challenging.

Industry thinks digi-wallets and NFC are overhyped

google-walletThe payments industry is slowly starting to adopt new mobile payments technologies, but industry leaders believe that the digital wallet concept is overhyped, along with NFC.

The Payments Innovation Jury, an anonymous group of 25 industry leaders gathered in a hollowed out volcano, reckons the next wave of e-payment innovation will come from Asia rather than Europe.

The secretive Payment Innovation Jury features members from 14 different countries whose names are kept private, so they can speak freely. Most members are or have been high level execs in companies such as MasterCard, PayPal and Visa, reports Venture Beat

In their latest report, the jury concluded that NFC and digital wallets are overhyped, and we tend to agree. Most members don’t believe NFC will live up to its hype and many reckon there is no demonstrable need for contactless payments from consumers. However, it is worth noting that NFC has plenty of applications other than mobile payments. More than half of the group believe digital wallets will replace credit and debit card payments, but a sizable number don’t agree.

“The Jury offered their views on which payments innovation has the greatest hype rating and therefore the biggest risk that the business case will not be achieved,” the report said. “Hype is particularly prevalent in payments, with many organizations trying very hard to talk up their chosen innovation in order to achieve the necessary critical mass.”

In other words it is beast to tread carefully, just in case. Many outfits are indeed trying to talk up their solutions, but we are still a long way from widespread adoption and standardization. One jury member argued that progress in Europe is hampered by standardization initiatives such as SEPA, but a lot of innovation is expected from Asia and Africa.

Interestingly, the group found that cross-border remittance services have a lot of potential. Sending money abroad via mobile payment solutions could be the most profitable niche over the next five years. It is a rather big market. Plenty of countries in Eastern Europe, North Africa and practically the entire third world have sizable expat communities who send money back home on a regular basis.

Towns look to NFC to attract high street shoppers

google-walletHigh street shops are under a lot of pressure from tech savvier e-commerce outfits, but a group of town and city managers believes they can help reverse the trend by enlisting the help of NFC technology.

It is not a case of fighting fire with fire, though.

The Association of Town and City Management (ATCM), which represents close to seven hundred shopping locations, has teamed up with NFC loyalty programme supplier MoLo Rewards. They aim to enhance the town centre offer by integrating NFC support in a more traditional setting.

The goal is to provide local, independent shops some of the same capabilities used by major retail players, allowing them to compete with internet based competitors. The programme offers establishments in town centres to better integrate their services, combine reward programmes with free parking , access to leisure centres or events.

ATCM manager Guy Douglas told NFC World that the association decided to use MoLo’s approach after the outfit made the case for NFC and elaborated its ideas.

“It just made sense to us,” he said. “A town and city centre is only vibrant and thriving if people find a reason to go there. NFC is a way of delivering an enhanced town centre offer, which can only be a good thing especially when the high street is hugely challenged by e-commerce.”

ATCM chief exec Martin Blackwell said the association will use its two decades worth of experience to enhance the high street shopping experience, with support from MoLo Rewards. He added that the association is organising meeting with mobile network operators, card issuers and retail groups in an effort to shape the adoption of NFC technology.

ATCM and MoLo believe they could bring their integrated NFC system to town and city centres later this year.

Heavyweights hug mobile payments, but more work ahead

google-walletA series of optimistic reports and forecasts on e-commerce seems to indicate that mobile payments are becoming increasingly commonplace and that we could soon ditch our trusty leather wallets in favour of smartphones. Sadly though, we won’t, at least not anytime soon.

The trend is positive and we are seeing a lot of growth, especially in m-commerce. In addition, a number of big players have made significant announcements in recent months. Last week Visa expanded its Visa Ready Partner Programme in an effort to get more vendors, developers and retailers on board. Samsung followed up with a service of its own, the Samsung Wallet, which bears more than a passing resemblance to Apple’s Passbook app. Samsung already managed to attract several partners for its new service, including Visa.

Then there is MasterCard’s MasterPass service, which allows retailers come up with their own applications and services, based on MasterCard’s infrastructure. PayPal is no newcomer to the market, but its PayPal Here service is. Launched in the US last year, it finally found its way across the pond to European shores. It offers a comprehensive solution, with a hardware dongle and cross-platform app support, and it allows users to pay using credit cards, cash, PayPall wallet or checks.

What about the elephant in the room? Well, there’s actually two elephants. Google Wallet has been around for quite a while, but it failed to take off. It was supposed to demonstrate NFC capabilities on Nexus gear, dating back to the Nexus S, which it did. However, much like NFC, Google Wallet never made much of a name for itself.

It might have something to do with the second elephant, Apple, as it never embraced NFC technology and it is still unclear whether the next iPhone will feature it. Apple has not made much noise on the mobile payment front, which doesn’t mean it is not looking into it. To the contrary, Apple has already filed several patents for NFC enabled devices and services. Cupertino doesn’t like spilling the beans on upcoming products and services, and unlike some companies, it tends to have excellent execution. It is also worth noting that Apple bought AuthenTec, a maker of fingerprint sensors and security solutions, for $356 million last year.

With all that in mind, nobody should be surprised by soaring m-commerce and mobile payments statistics. In fact, we should be seeing even more services, from brick and mortar shops to pubs, but we aren’t. Mobile payments and are still geeky turf, with little traction among mainstream consumers. The sheer lack of widespread support for m-commerce platforms and the fast pace of development means that many consumers don’t even know it exists. What’s more, many of those that do still have some reservations.

Privacy and security are valid concerns, but a recent survey by Intela revealed that the majority of smartphone users in the UK now feel comfortable with mobile payments. It is hardly surprising, as most smartphone users have grown accustomed to making micro transactions in app stores or through in-app payments. The difference between spending a few pence on an app and a few pounds in a retail shop is philosophical and not technical in nature. In fact, it appears that humble micro transactions have already done more for m-commerce confidence than all the fancy services rolled out by credit card companies and tech outfits.

In spite of that, smartphones will not replace wallets, at least not entirely and certainly not anytime soon. Cash can’t be hacked, it can’t be rendered useless by a flat battery or a few drops of lager. In some cases it is just more practical. The same pretty much goes for credit cards. Smartphones have their own set of advantages. Motorway tolls, public transportation, congestion charges and parking based on GPS information are some that come to mind. Phones are an excellent payment platform, but they will complement cash and cards, not replace them.

Visa opens mobile payments programme

visa-epayVisa is expanding its programme to integrate payment technologies into emerging devices and platforms, including NFC-enabled smartphones. 

The Visa Ready Partner Program is designed to help device manufacturers, mobile networks and other partners to gain access to Visa intellectual property and licenses, including APIs and SDK’s for mobile point-of-sale payments.

PayPal and Google to cash in as mobile payments go mainstream

google-walletMobile payments are slowly but surely going mainstream. Mass adoption of smartphones and tablets is making the dream of fully digital wallets a reality and it is opening new possibilities for traditional banks, credit card companies and net-based payment services.